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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
sad
The School for Good Mothers depicts what seem like a far-away dystopian world but can easily become a reality in the not so distant future.
Jessamine Chan has produced a taut and terrifying debut- one wherein a single lapse in judgement forces a young mother to enroll in a government reform program for "bad mothers".
Faced with the possibility of losing her child, Frida Liu must prove that she can live up to the standards set for good mothers- that she can unlearn her bad parenting methods.
This debut is a brilliant reflection of the unrealistic expectations society places on a mother (on women in general), of how women are often not treated as living, breathing humans but as a body existing solely for the purpose of bearing and rearing children.
I'd highly recommend this book to dystopian fiction lovers. Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing me with a digital copy of the book to review.
Jessamine Chan has produced a taut and terrifying debut- one wherein a single lapse in judgement forces a young mother to enroll in a government reform program for "bad mothers".
Faced with the possibility of losing her child, Frida Liu must prove that she can live up to the standards set for good mothers- that she can unlearn her bad parenting methods.
This debut is a brilliant reflection of the unrealistic expectations society places on a mother (on women in general), of how women are often not treated as living, breathing humans but as a body existing solely for the purpose of bearing and rearing children.
I'd highly recommend this book to dystopian fiction lovers. Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing me with a digital copy of the book to review.
Clawed at my heart with every page. I especially appreciate Chen’s short sentences, that deliver the harsh realities of this world (and our world within it) as devastating matter-of-fact truths. Brilliant read, although I’m mindful of the power dynamics (that the author does pull out) which make these conditions particularly real for young working class Black and brown mothers in particular.
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
this book really frustrated me. I felt let down by the ending, angry and sad. I think that was the point thought
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
An absorbing meditation on motherhood, crime and punishment, and “big brother” (big mother? Haha).
Overall I enjoyed this book, the premise was good - it made me suitably angry and disgusted. But I don't know I felt like it was trying to do too many messages at once and none of them felt finished. It got repetitive by like 3/4 of the way through and I felt it could've done more with the concept.
I also didn't like the ending. I'm not saying all books need happy endings but I wanted it to be at least more satisfying than it was - kind of felt like the entire rest of the book was a waste of time at the end. Maybe that was the point but I didn't like it.
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes